Is Your Mora Too Sharp? Update: Got My First Mora!

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Erik
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Re: Is Your Mora Too Sharp? Update: Got My First Mora!

Post by Erik »

Weetabix wrote:My daughter was ordering a friend's book off Amazon last night, so I threw in one of these.
That model is very popular among carpenters and handymen here. The only difference with a "classic" Mora is the handle, which is plastic and has a finger guard. The plastic look to it has people using it as a utility knife, but I think the blade itself is the same as in the other knifes Mora sells.
Weetabix wrote:I already have a Cold Steel Finn Bear. Erik - is this a mora? I carry it in my backpack every day, and use it with some frequency. It's sharp, convenient, and nicely sized.
No, it's not a Mora. Mora is a brandname, named after the town where it was first made. Mora also use the brand name Frosts, but that knife is a Cold Steel which is a US company. I guess it's a Cold Steel version of the traditional Scandinavian knife pattern, it looks a bit like Finnish and Saami knifes.
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Erik
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Re: Is Your Mora Too Sharp? Update: Got My First Mora!

Post by Erik »

Btw... Even though Mora knifes are very cheap, they seem to have a really good reputation even among skilled knife makers. I was kind of surprised by it, because as I said they are pretty much used as ordinary tools here, they're not something you show off with. (I know hunters that have expensive Saami knifes visible in their belts, but still keep a Mora hidden out of sight and use it for most tasks.)

I once met a knife maker in the US that was really impressed by the simplicity of how a Mora was made. I'm not a knife expert, but I recall him saying something like this: "I spend hours forging to get the perfect blade, and those Mora guys just slapped two pieces of carbon together with one piece of steel and got a knife that's as good quality as anything I can make for a fraction of the cost.."

I was once lurking in a knife forum, where there were guys that were real experts on knife making and high end quality knifes. A new guy came in and asked for advice on what knife to buy that he could really rely on, having a $100 budget. One of the experts on the forum simply said "just get 10 Moras, they'll last you a lifetime"
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Weetabix
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Re: Is Your Mora Too Sharp? Update: Got My First Mora!

Post by Weetabix »

Erik wrote:(I know hunters that have expensive Saami knifes visible in their belts, but still keep a Mora hidden out of sight and use it for most tasks.)
I've never understood that mindset

So I need to make sure that when I get one, it's actually made by Mora?

I have a Helle Harding knife that my wife bought me while in Norway. What do you think of those? It's pretty enough that I mostly use it as the clean knife for apples and cheese and such when I'm camping.
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Erik
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Re: Is Your Mora Too Sharp? Update: Got My First Mora!

Post by Erik »

Weetabix wrote:So I need to make sure that when I get one, it's actually made by Mora?

I have a Helle Harding knife that my wife bought me while in Norway. What do you think of those? It's pretty enough that I mostly use it as the clean knife for apples and cheese and such when I'm camping.
Yeah, if you want a genuine Mora, it should say Mora.

My very subjective opinion of Helle (as well as Brusletto) is that they're good quality knifes, a lot better looking than Moras, more expensive, but doesn't hold an edge quite as well as Mora does and needs more sharpening to stay sharp.
As a clean knife that is used for food or cleaning fish and game, I would have no problem carrying it, as a general utility knife I'd be a bit more careful with how I used it.

Main problem is that when I compare it to a cheap Mora it's hard for me to justify the extra cost, even though it's a lot better looking.
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Weetabix
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Re: Is Your Mora Too Sharp? Update: Got My First Mora!

Post by Weetabix »

Erik wrote:Main problem is that when I compare it to a cheap Mora it's hard for me to justify the extra cost, even though it's a lot better looking.
Yeah. She bought it as a souvenir/gift that worked out very well for me.
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MiddleAgedKen
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Re: Is Your Mora Too Sharp? Update: Got My First Mora!

Post by MiddleAgedKen »

I have a Mora, got from Amazon after I broke the tip off my Schrade Old Timer. The Mora's a better knife (albeit non-folding), for less money.
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Greg
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Re: Is Your Mora Too Sharp? Update: Got My First Mora!

Post by Greg »

Denis wrote:
Weetabix wrote:I'm thinking about getting a bunch and littering our vehicles and 3-day bags with them.
I have done just that, and I don't regret it; I always have a servicable knife to hand. Cheap enough to buy plenty, you won't be upset if you lose one, and you can afford to lend them.
Hey I did that too. All of my kits have bright orange Mora 760's. And I gave my wife my 780 to use as a beater. She loves the knife, and the things she does to it.... if she were abusing a knife that cost me more than $14 that way I'd be upset.
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308Mike
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Re: Is Your Mora Too Sharp? Update: Got My First Mora!

Post by 308Mike »

Greg wrote:Hey I did that too. All of my kits have bright orange Mora 760's. And I gave my wife my 780 to use as a beater. She loves the knife, and the things she does to it.... if she were abusing a knife that cost me more than $14 that way I'd be upset.
What, your knife isn't a pry bar too? Or pounding it into frozen meat with a tenderizing mallet? :lol: :lol: :lol:
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Greg
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Re: Is Your Mora Too Sharp? Update: Got My First Mora!

Post by Greg »

308Mike wrote:
Greg wrote:Hey I did that too. All of my kits have bright orange Mora 760's. And I gave my wife my 780 to use as a beater. She loves the knife, and the things she does to it.... if she were abusing a knife that cost me more than $14 that way I'd be upset.
What, your knife isn't a pry bar too? Or pounding it into frozen meat with a tenderizing mallet? :lol: :lol: :lol:
Oh, far more creative than that. She's an aerospace engineer after all.
Maybe we're just jaded, but your villainy is not particularly impressive. -Ennesby

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Netpackrat
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Re: Is Your Mora Too Sharp? Update: Got My First Mora!

Post by Netpackrat »

Greg wrote:Oh, far more creative than that. She's an aerospace engineer after all.
Gah. Not another one!
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